Midnight Quest

by Honor Raconteur

  “Ihan,” Chizeld coolly returned. “Inspection is finished. This woman is High Priestess Jewel Jomadd. Priestess will now address the Guard. Have everyone gather in the main hall. Now.”

  “Yes, sir!” the Ihan nervously yelped before scrambling away.

  From the way that poor young man had reacted, it was like he feared Chizeld would start ripping limbs off. Her head cocked a little to the side. “Chizeld, I didn’t know you could be scary,” Jewel commented in bemusement.

  “Can be very scary with incompetent louts,” he growled menacingly. “These men’s irresponsible behavior nearly got Priestess killed.”

  Seen like that…alright, maybe he had just cause to be enraged with them. Actually, the reminder of it made her rather mad as well. “Well, let’s go to the hall, shall we?”

  “First must deal with Commander,” Chizeld corrected. “That man is the most corrupt and will cause trouble if left alone.”

  True. “Alright, then lead me to him.”

  He led her straight down the hall and to the very back area, or at least it sounded that way. After a turn and a few more steps, Chizeld stopped and yanked open a door. “Commander Shariva.”

  “Sanhan Lorin!” the commander barked out, chair scraping on the wood floor as the man jerked to his feet. “A Sanhan has no authority to be turning this center upside down like this!”

  Unfazed, Chizeld calmly introduced, “Before you is Jewel Jomadd, Guardian of the Barrier and the High Priestess of Ramath.”

  Commander Shariva made a sound like he had just choked on his own words and didn’t quite like the taste of them.

  Jewel looked straight ahead to where the man stood, and made her voice cold. “Commander Shariva, you have abused your position here. You have allowed a political power to manipulate this Order.”

  “Priestess—” he started desperately, no doubt sensing where this was going.

  “Your actions fed me to the wolves,” she snarled, temper flaring. “You will not be forgiven for this. As of this moment you are stripped of your rank and dismissed, never to again serve Elahandra in any capacity.”

  “Priestess, there were circumstances—”

  “Circumstances?” she repeated. For the first time in her life, she felt like she needed a weapon of some sort in hand. This anger had no channel for her. Well, maybe strangling the idiot would help. “You are supposed to be beyond reproach. Your first duty is always with the high priestess and Order of Elahandra. Instead, you allowed Thornock to buy you and dictate the actions of this center, something that they should never have been allowed to do. No circumstances can excuse such behavior. You are dismissed, Commander.”

  “But—”

  Her voice turned glacial. “Do not make me repeat myself again.”

  He fell into angry silence, breath whooshing in deep rasps. She had no pity on him. “You are allowed one hour to pack before you must leave. Make use of your time. Chizeld?”

  Her armsman turned her around and guided her back out of the room and into the hallway. “Main hall?” she asked him.

  Without a word, Chizeld guided her there. She gained the impression that it was near the heart of the building, and the sound gained a deeper echo the further they walked.

  Several men had beat them to the hall. They were talking in nervous tones with each other but at her and Chizeld’s entrance fell instantly silent. In fact, the silence of the room was such that even her breathing sounded loud in her ears.

  She took up station near one wall, ears trained on the people in the room. In mere minutes, groups of people filed in. Tugging on Chizeld’s sleeve to get his attention, she motioned for him to come down to her level before whispering, “How many are here?”

  “All one hundred,” he responded quietly.

  “Good.” By heavens, she didn’t enjoy this situation, but it needed to be done. Straightening her spine, she lifted her chin and took two steps forward. She pitched her voice to reach every corner of the room. “Gentlemen, I am Jewel Jomadd. I am the woman that you failed to protect from Belthain’s ministers and their machinations. I am well aware that some of you had no idea of what was happening and simply followed orders. I am also aware that most of you did know and obeyed those orders anyway.”

  “Priestess—” a man near her desperately started.

  She silenced him with a sharp chop of her hand. “I will not hear excuses. I am going to move among you. If I touch you and ask that you step toward the front, do so. Bort?”

  The dog nuzzled at her hand and she placed it more firmly on his head as he guided her footsteps so that she didn’t knock into anyone. Jewel didn’t need sight to know who were the fifteen that Chizeld mentioned. She could feel the mantel of authority clearly on each man. But she couldn’t feel the rest of them, and it was only the sound of their breathing and their body heat that gave her any indication of where people stood. No one dared to make a sound otherwise, no doubt fearfully watching her every move. They had no idea, after all, if the men she touched were in trouble or not.

  It took some time for her to move among them, touching each one on the chest or shoulder and quietly asking for them to move. When she’d touched the last one, murmurs started up in different areas of the room. They no doubt now had at least a suspicion of why she’d singled those men out.

  Cautious, she decided to move back to Chizeld’s side before saying anything else. “Bort, back to Chizeld,” she directed.

  The dog obediently turned her around and guided her back to her armsman.

  Chizeld touched her shoulder when she came within range then gently put a hand at the small of her back in support. She actually appreciated the gesture, as it eased her mind to know exactly where he stood. Drawing in a breath to quell her nervousness, she raised her voice and loudly announced, “Those of you that I did not touch are dismissed from the Guard. You are never to serve the Order again. Leave.”

  This time, an outbreak of protests sent her ears ringing. Jewel didn’t even try to shout them down, just pointed sternly at the door.

  Chizeld took a step forward and bellowed, “LEAVE! Priestess has issued command.”

  “I do not feel Elahandra’s blessing with you any longer,” she verified coldly. “I do not trust you to protect my sister priestesses as you should. You are released from service in dishonor. I will not tolerate any further disobedience. Pack your belongings and leave.”

  “Will not!” someone shouted from the crowd, and with the shout came the sound of a sword sliding quickly free of its sheath. “The priestess does not have the authority to—”

  Chizeld moved so quickly that a light breeze flowed over her skin. Jewel flinched back from the movement, startled, and then started again when Bortonor started growling and snarling. Good heavens, were they really going to threaten her?

  “Has the guard forgotten who to obey? Who formed it? Who to serve?” Chizeld’s voice seemed to echo against the stones, it was so loud, like a thunderclap of anger that had exploded. “Every man in this room should serve the Goddess of Elahandra and those ordained! This woman has more authority than the ministers of Thornock! Anyone who cannot recognize the truth of this has no business here!”

  “But—”

  The protest cut off instantly as intense light filled the room. The fine hairs on Jewel’s skin prickled with the intensity of it, and if she didn’t recognize the source of it, she’d swear that fire surrounded her. But this presence she knew all too well, and she smiled in recognition.

  “Elahandra,” she greeted aloud (because frankly she didn’t think most of the men in here would know unless she said something), “you honor us with your presence.”

  “Some of you will find it an honor,” Elahandra responded tartly, voice sounding unusually loud in the dead silence of the room. “The rest of you are right to be terrified. I’ve let this situation carry on because I had hoped that if the situation became desperate enough, you’d become more humble, and turn to me and your god as you should have. Inste
ad, what do I find? That you’ve sold yourself to the highest bidder! You, who were supposed to protect my chosen!”

  Jewel could hear a lot of nervous gulping and even a few whimpers. And to think, Elahandra wasn’t even there in body, just her voice. They might have fainted if she actually had come in person, she thought, an evil smile on her face.

  “I will not tolerate this any longer,” Elahandra boomed at a deafening volume. “If you were ordered to leave by my priestess, do so! And if any of you dare to threaten her, I will strike you dead on the spot!”

  With a snap, the light abruptly vanished, returning the room to its normal state.

  They apparently knew better than to argue this time. There were still grumbles, and wails of disbelief, but people also started to file out of the doors. She listened for several minutes, taut with apprehension, but no one tried to approach her directly. When the room was mostly clear, she relaxed and turned to the men standing patiently next to her. “Gentlemen, I am very glad that you at least, are loyal. You have a large task ahead of you. I need some of you to instantly go to the various priestesses that are already called. Otherwise you will be tasked to rebuild the Center and start gathering recruits to train.”

  “Priestess,” a voice that sounded older and somewhat raspy asked, “Who should go?”

  She had no idea. Turning slightly to her left she queried, “Chizeld, you trained here did you not?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know these men well enough to know who has the skills to train recruits?”

  “Of course.”

  “Then designate those men, please. Try to leave some here to help with that, but I need at least two men to go to each priestess.”

  “Hmmm…understood.”

  Jewel stood silently by as Chizeld started assigning responsibilities and tasks. Since she had absolutely no idea how a center should be run, most of what he said didn’t make much sense. Still, from their reactions, she judged that Chizeld did indeed know what to do and who should do it. She only needed to stand there and nod thoughtfully, giving her unofficial stamp of approval to his decisions.

  Eight men were assigned to the different priestesses and told to leave as soon as possible. Clari already had help on the way (actually, by now, they might have already arrived) but having reinforcements from the Center couldn’t hurt. Clari had a very strong need for help and not much support from the local people. Two of them, of course, were for Chantel so they didn’t have much of a trip to make. They swore that they would present themselves to her by that evening.

  The two heading for Jordia’s priestess had more of an interesting task, as neither Jewel nor Chizeld could tell them where to find her. They’d have to pray to Elahandra and get direct guidance. Jewel thought to offer for them to just join their party the next morning, as they were heading that direction anyway, but then she thought better of the offer. Two men traveling would be much faster than three men, a blind woman, and a dog. Especially since she always slowed down considerably around rough terrain, which she would be crossing soon. No, better they leave separately. Jordia’s priestess needed help, and the sooner it could arrive, the better.

  “Jewel?” Chizeld’s tone silently asked if there was anything more she wanted to add.

  “I think we’re done here,” she answered his unspoken query. “Unless there’s something else?”

  “No, nothing else.”

  “Then let’s return. We have our own preparations to see to.”

  ~*~*~*~

  After Jewel left, Rialt had no been quite sure what to do with himself. Having a bit of space to himself like this was rare. After a moment of pondering, he took himself down to the back of the house and the open training yard there. Father always claimed that if a man had energy and time on his hands, the smart thing to do was train.

  Rialt spent a good amount of time loosening up, going through the forms with not only his axe, but the long dagger as well. In short order, Sarvell joined him, although he chose to work in a different corner of the yard, well out of Rialt’s way. The blades whistled through the air, but they did no speak, just trained in companionable silence.

  By some unspoken agreement, the mayor’s guards did no approach, but let them be. A few watched for a space—why, Rialt had no idea as they surely had better things to do—but other duties eventually called them away, until it was just the two of them left.

  Feeling warm and limber again, not to mention a bit sweaty, Rialt put his weapons back in their sheaths. He stood off to the side, in a pleasant spot of shade, and watched Sarvell for a time. The man had good form. Not as polished as a professional soldier, perhaps, but close enough to make no never mind.

  The blond abruptly stilled, swung the sword in his hand right, and then sheathed it with an easy motion. Sweat beaded his forehead and he breathed a mite hard, but a satisfied smile lingered on his face. It felt good to train, it did.

  Sarvell wiped away the sweat on his head with the back of his hand as he crossed over the yard to stand at Rialt’s side. “I’m proud of you, you know,” Sarvell stated with an impish twinkle in his eyes.

  That twinkle said good and well that whatever the man said next, Rialt should no take it seriously. So he responded mildly with, “What, now?”

  “Proud of you,” Sarvell repeated, more mischievously. “There was a time that you wouldn’t have let Jewel go off with just Chizeld. It’s so sweet to see how much you trust him now.”

  “You be daft.” Rialt snorted and looked away, but this blank training space of dirt and brick walls did no have anything to entice a man’s eyes, so he naturally turned to look at the blond again. “You think I be worse than Bort, eh?”

  “Rialt,” Sarvell responded patiently, “you are worse than the dog.”

  Rialt let out a chuckle, as he could no refute that and did no see the harm in it, anyway.

  Shaking his head, Sarvell continued, “Fortunately for Jewel, Chizeld tends to check your more protective instincts. I would shudder to think of her future otherwise.”

  It would no be as bad as all that, would it? Well, mayhap it would. Rialt could no be bothered either way. “Can no blame me,” he pointed out, half-seriously. “The lass has no fear, and we have seen her face danger that would make a grown man flinch. Shards! If you asked any soldier to shoulder the mission she had, you would find scant volunteers.”

  “And she won’t even complain,” Sarvell sighed, commiserating. “I wonder some days if she’s just so used to things being more difficult for her than everyone else, that it doesn’t even occur to her that this—” meaning the trip in general “—would be difficult for anyone. It’s either that or she just lost the habit of complaining as a child.”

  “Belike both.”

  “Mmm, maybe. But I’m wondering why Elahandra let it get this bad to begin with. Why wait so long to put the crystals back in place?”

  “Jewel asked the same question of herself.” He had no liked the answer either. “The answer is two-fold. It was pride, you see, that cost the clans the crystals. In our anger, we cast aside herself’s protection. We shut ourselves off from her, and so she could no help us.”

  Sarvell’s expression filled with bleak understanding. “The limitations of the god, huh? Elahandra was given the right to work only through her priestesses in each land, and without the crystals or their priestesses…”

  “She could no do a thing, not unless someone asked for help,” Rialt finished unhappily. “But of course, no one did. No one needed to at first. Thornock’s crystal was still blazing along, after all. It was no until later, much later, that problems started occurring. But by then, everyone had forgotten that in order to have a god’s protection, they had to ask for it.”

  It unfortunately made too much sense, although it sickened Rialt to admit to it. Even the Ramath had been too stubborn to ask for help.

  “So what changed?” Sarvell asked aloud, almost rhetorically.

  “Jewel.” Rialt smiled without meaning to.
“She asked. She was surprised to learn she was the first to ask. It boggles a man’s mind, it does, but no other priestess thought to do it. Mayhap they were too involved in politics to think.”

  “Or too concerned with their own safety to worry about something that would happen in the future,” Sarvell growled, a dark scowl drawing his brows together in a flat line.

  Rialt grunted in sour agreement. “Eh, or that. But when Jewel asked, herself’s hands were untied, and finally she could act. At least, that be what the lass told me.”

  Sarvell lifted a hand and rubbed at his closed eyes wearily. “Two hundred years of political maneuvering, wars, bribes, and threats. And it all could have been avoided by a simple prayer for help. Dross and dreck, but it makes me mad enough to strangle somebody.”

  He empathized completely. In fact, if Sarvell could figure out the right man to strangle, he’d help.

  “We need to make sure that all of that is recorded somewhere,” Sarvell stated firmly, clearly deep in thought. “Chizeld would be the right person to make sure it happens. Maybe, if it’s written out in detail, future generations won’t make the same mistake.”

  “Eh,” Rialt agreed, “it be a good thought, that one.” Assuming that the future generations took the time to read the records. But he could no worry about the future and what might or might no be. He had his hands full with the present.

  “Speaking of the future…” the mischievous light in Sarvell’s eyes rekindled, although this time he edged a little away, as if he knew that saying this would get his head handed back to him. “When are you going to openly confess to Jewel, hmmm?”

  Caught off-guard, Rialt could only stare at him in spluttering amazement for a moment. “Ya bandy-legged dastard! What are ya noising on about?”

  Sarvell took another step backwards, smile turning evil. “Oh come on, don’t play innocent with me. At first, you didn’t even like her. Now, you’re actually making doe eyes at her.”

  Doe eyes?! He had no!

  “Have some consideration,” Sarvell continued casually, as if he were no working himself up for a drubbing. “It’s making me and Chizeld uncomfortable. Besides, it’s completely useless. Jewel can’t see you looking at her that way, remember? You’re going to have to actually say something.”